by K T Munson
“Do you mean it?” Liam asked, and Elisabeth felt, more than heard, the hope in his voice.
“Yes!” She insisted, “I’ll go get it now.”
“Wait,” Liam said, catching her arm. “Why don’t you bring it to me tonight?”
Elisabeth froze. “At night?” she asked.
Liam nodded. “Just so your father won’t find out.”
“Not too late?” Elisabeth asked.
“Just after the sun goes down,” Liam said.
“I can do that,” Elisabeth said before hugging Liam. “It’s going to be all right.”
Liam helped her back onto the tree. “Thank you,” he called after her as she hurried back to the house.
Her papa didn’t hide the money in the house. Most of it was kept safe in his study, in jars on the bookshelf. The rest of it was behind the secret stone doorway Elisabeth wasn’t supposed to know about, though she knew it went to the gate. It was easy for her to wait for Malthael to go to bed before sneaking into the study.
The heat of the room washed over her as she picked up a dark teal jar from one of the bookshelves and set it on the floor. Inside were at least a hundred gold coins. They glittered as she took them out in handfuls and put them into the drawstring bag on her waist. Once it sagged and the seams strained from the weight, she carefully returned the container back to the shelf.
She stuck to the walls as she slipped through the tranquil house and crept toward the patio door. It would make for a longer walk around the grounds, but she wouldn’t walk by Malthael’s or Milo’s rooms. Tiss was down the hall and was a heavy sleeper—her snoring made Elisabeth giggle as she snuck by. Slipping out onto the patio, Elisabeth ran the entire way to their tree. The moon wasn’t fully out yet as dusk turned into night. A lightning bug zipped by her nose. Her shadow stretched long as the sun set. Emboldened by her own daring, Elisabeth threw up her arms so that her shadow looked like a monster that the children from weeks ago had imagined lived there.
When she reached the tree she called up. “Liam?”
“Here!” he called back, leaning over the side.
With a foolish grin, Elisabeth climbed the tree. When she reached the top, Liam reached for her hand as she walked across the branch. Beyond him she could see the smoke and steam rising from chimneys all across the city of Malpre. Liam reached for her hand and helped her to cross onto the top of the wall.
“Do you have it?” he asked as she stepped onto the stone.
She untied the bag and held it out to him. He opened it up and then jumped up in joy. Throwing his arms around Elisabeth, he twirled her around once. They were both laughing as he set her back down.
“Now everything is going to end happily,” Elisabeth said proudly.
“I have everything I need,” Liam agreed. No sooner were the words out of his mouth than he pushed her off the wall and out into the street.
Chapter 4
M althael woke with a start to Duke and Nathan sounding barking an alarm. Malthael reached into the Netherworld, pulled out his fiery weapon, and rushed, shirtless, into the hallway. As he hurried down the stairs Milo joined him.
“What is it?” Milo sounded worried but he held a long thin blade at the ready.
“I don’t know.”
It wasn’t the gate, or there would be a gonging noise throughout the house. But something was wrong. Malthael could feel it in his bones. When they reached the dogs, he found them whining. They paced about, looking despondent. It only took him a moment to realize they weren’t under attack.
“Where is Elisabeth?” Malthael demanded.
Milo looked up. “She must still be in her room.”
Tiss could sleep through anything but Elisabeth? She would have woken at the dog’s barking. The lack of her presence filled him with trepidation. “Wake Tiss and search the house.”
They separated. Malthael followed the Netherhounds, Duke and Nathan. Outside they headed straight for a tree. The dogs whimpered and pawed at the tree trunk. Malthael’s dread grew as he studied the top of the wall as though it would reveal its secrets if he stared long enough. The trees shadow made the stone feel sinister but revealed nothing.
When he returned to the house Milo was waiting. “She wasn’t in her room.” He shook his head.
“Where is she?” He couldn’t believe Elisabeth would just leave. She’d never defied him before.
Milo shrunk from his fury. “I don’t know.”
Malthael bellowed his displeasure before returning his weapon to the Netherworld. “We need to find her.”
Rushing back to his rooms, he threw on oversized clothes. Hiding his demonic state, Malthael tried to understand what was happening. Elisabeth would never leave the grounds willingly. He knew she’d never break the rules and leave so someone must have taken her. The idea doubled the anger in his gut.
Making his way hastily down the main stairs he found Duke and Nathan pacing as though distressed. Milo and Tiss looked anxious. Malthael knew they hadn’t found his daughter.
“Where?” He demanded of his Netherhounds.
One bark from Duke, and they were off. Malthael, Milo, and Tiss followed them across the yards and back to the tree. Elisabeth was nowhere to be seen, which meant only one thing – she had gone over the wall. Tiss burst into tears as she curled her serpentine tail closer to herself. Milo worried his hands as though washing them. A black rage overtook Malthael.
“No unwelcome demons can enter here,” Milo said, sounding confused.
“A mortal can.” Malthael shook his head. “I should never have allowed that exception.”
“It was for the deliveries of food,” Tiss reminded them through her tears. “It’s my fault,” she wailed.
“Tiss, stay at the house in case she returns,” Malthael said gently. He had always become weak against any woman weeping.
“Where will you search?” Tiss asked as she sniffled.
Instead of answering Malthael leaped straight up into the air. He landed hard on the wall, old mortar cracked, and pieces fell into the street. A lamplighter looked on, shocked, as Malthael dropped onto the cobblestone. Milo followed a moment behind. Duke and Nathan appeared in the street beside them, having moved through the wall in spirit forms.
They sniffed the ground as the lamplighter fled in the other direction, glancing over his shoulder a few times. His eyes so wide that Malthael sensed his fear and it made him doubted the lamplighter knew anything.
Duke barked once before running down the street. Whoever took Elisabeth couldn’t have gotten far on foot, but if they were in a carriage, who knew where they were.
“Get out of the way!” the driver of a buggy shouted.
They dodged the transport as it careened around a bend in the road. Duke and Nathan continued to lope down the street. They startled the horse, spurring the beast to gallop harder past them. Milo and Malthael sprinted to keep up with the Netherhounds as they sought Elisabeth. Malthael had been so distracted lately that he hadn’t realized anything was wrong. Elisabeth was at that age when she could awaken at any moment.
If her other half woke up, there would be tragedy.
Chapter 5
E lisabeth awoke with a groan. Disoriented, she couldn’t remember where she was. It took her a moment to realize why there was so much movement; she was being jostled around in a covered cart. She tried to sit up, but her hands were tied in front of her. Glancing down, she found manacles retraining her feet. Her heart started to drum wildly and she struggled to catch her breath.
“Help,” Elisabeth whispered breathlessly. Then louder, “Hel—”
A hand went over her face. It was dirty and smelled of unwashed flesh. She gagged and tried to pull away, only to be hauled back. Her eyes were wide with fear as she felt her back push against a tall and bony man. His scraggly beard brushed against her forehead as she looked up at him. His knobby fingertips dug into her cheeks and lips.
“Not another word,” he growled, and his breath made her hair curl.<
br />
The tears started immediately. She’d broken the rules and now she’d been taken. Fear clenched in her stomach. She fought down the bile rising in her throat. The wagon stopped moving, and the man pulled the doors open. Liam stood outside.
“Help!” she said, reaching for him. “This man took me!”
“You idiot,” he sneered with a raised chin, and her arms fell limp in her lap. Her blood ran cold as he confirmed her fears. “I’m with them.”
Her heart broke as her memories came back, and she slumped back. Why would her friend would do this to her? A woman came around the back and picked up the coin purse that had been sitting in the carriage next to her.
“You were right,” the woman said taking one of Elisabeth’s curls and twisting it in her grimy fingers. “She will fetch a pretty penny.”
Liam crossed his arms smugly. “Told you,”
“Don’t sass your mama.” The man slapped the back of his head.
Liam rubbed his scalp. “Hey!”
“Let’s get her inside,” the woman said.
“But we’re friends.” Elisabeth said lamely as the man undid her manacles.
Liam and his father half carried her to the ancient house with a patched window. Liam shook his head. “You were so easy to fool. Everyone was too afraid of the scary mansion and the story about the monsters, but all I found was one lonely girl. I’ve never convinced someone so fast before that I was their friend.”
Elisabeth experienced true anguish twist within her ribcage as they passed into the main dingy room. It was as though someone had taken hold of her heart and was crushing it. The woman closed the door behind her as a part of Elisabeth, something inside her, shouted louder than it ever had before, demanding retribution for her mistreatment. Her soul felt as though she was being ripped in two and she struggled to focus or even breathe. Suddenly, all she saw was red. Turning sharply, Elisabeth broke free of the man’s hold and grasped the front of Liam’s shirt. Her hands passed through flesh and muscle into the boy’s chest.
“Get her off of me!” Liam shouted.
Elisabeth could barely hear the words. Every part of her wanted him to suffer for his cruel trick. The woman shrieked, and the man tried to pry her off of him. Liam’s body fell away, and in her hands there was something that looked like Liam but was transparent. It glowed softly as Elisabeth was delirious. Time slowed as the woman continued to scream her head off.
Behind her the filthy house’s wooden door shattered in half causing reason to return to her.
Sinking to her knees, she felt her hold on Liam slip. Suddenly, Malthael was beside her. “You have to put his soul back.”
“His soul?” Elisabeth whispered.
He guided her hands to Liam’s body. “Listen to me,” Malthael’s voice was gentle but firm. “You are a very special girl, Elisabeth. You did this and now you need to make it right.”
“He told me he was my friend.” Elisabeth protested as fat tears rolled down her cheeks. “He lied.”
“I know it hurts, but he doesn’t deserve to die.”
Malthael moved his hands away, forcing Elisabeth to make a choice. Elisabeth nodded. She brought Liam’s soul back towards his body. It floated down and settled inside, like water filling a glass. She pressed her hands onto his chest, making sure it stayed in. After a moment, Liam inhaled deeply. Though he didn’t open his eyes, he was alive. The man and women cowered in fear of Malthael, the woman whimpered.
Elisabeth looked up at her papa. “Can we go home?” she asked, reaching for him. “I want to go home.”
Malthael gathered her into his arms without a word. Milo and the two Netherhounds joined them a moment later. Milo touched her back and she shied away from it. How could anyone love her? There was a monster in the mansion after all and it was her. Elisabeth clung to her papa as she promised to never again disobey him. He was the one person who had never lied to her.
“I’m sorry,” she managed despite her exhaustion.
“I will protect you,” Malthael responded.
“Everything will change now,” Milo said as Elisabeth faded into sleep.
“It was always going to happen.” Malthael’s voice seemed to so far away. “She cannot change what she is, only who she is. My only hope is that she will make the right decision.”
Ready for more of Elisabeth’s adventure?
Keep reading for a preview of The Sixth Gate (The Gate Trilogy Book 1).
Coming July 2017.
Planet of Ashlad
T he sea of faces floated below her as she walked the short distance across the stage. The large lecture hall had been set up to accommodate fine dining and even finer decorations. There was something beautiful about the old building and its hundreds-of-years-old architecture. A circular mouthpiece the size of a dessert plate sat atop a thin metal stand that was hooked into a sound projection system at the base of the stage.
“Welcome,” Dr. Elisabeth Avery said into the device with a smile—her voice resonated around the room. “It is my distinct pleasure to be invited to open this year’s gathering of the greatest minds in science. We are here to introduce our newest innovations and share our advancements in all fields on the scientific frontier. My focus on ectoplasm research has been very successful, but I believe the best way to highlight this is by showing you rather than telling you.”
A few chuckled in the audience as she tried to hide the nervous shake in her hands. She admonished herself silently. She was a scientist who could perform complex procedures, after all, but she couldn’t handle a room full of people. Life really did have its ironies.
Beside her was a simple suit made of thick fabric and metal—a deflated containment suit. It was airtight with bronze details. The most noticeable part was on top which was a clear circular part for the helmet that looked like a cage. The metal strips at the seams had rivets to help keep their shape, but the dark blue fabric was mostly bendable and sat on the stage in a pile next to her. Many people strained their necks to get a look at it.
“May I present A.J. Dennett,” Elisabeth said, holding an arm out.
There was an awkward pause, which was quickly filled with whispers. Elisabeth licked her lips nervously, wishing she had thought to bring a glass of water onto stage. She put on a fake smile and glared down at the suit. Any second, A.J.’s neutrino-based mass would fill the space.
“A.J.!” she snapped through clenched teeth.
Like magic, the suit began to fill with a strange white and sparkly substance until it was completely inflated. Elisabeth had always loved the way A.J.’s incorporeal form looked when he moved around. Without something to contain him, he would eventually return to what he was—stardust.
“My apologies, Miss Avery. I dozed off waiting for this to begin,” A.J. said, expressing his sympathies like a well-aged gentleman in the same accent that Elisabeth possessed. As they’d worked together for months on end, his voice had become as familiar to her as any in Ashlad. “I hope I haven’t caused any distress.”
“It is quite all right,” Elisabeth said, finally lowering her arm. “I believe it still had the desired effect.”
Half the audience was slack jawed. Many held their spectacles up to their eyes, but most were leaning forward to get a better look. Her work in ectoplasm research in the field of Fringe Sciences really should have been called “How to Trap Stardust That is Conscious,” but that didn’t sound quite as distinguished. If Elisabeth had learned anything in her career, it was that most of the people in the room simply valued distinguished-sounding titles.
“Good evening,” A.J. said, slapping his arms to his sides as he bowed. “Miss Avery has turned what should have ended a life into a life with which I can give back.”
Elisabeth could still remember the first time she heard about the haunted house. Never had she imagined this moment would come to pass—that after searching dozens of haunted houses, she’d find one with a real spirit and build him a body. If it weren’t for Elisabeth’s unique, inh
erited ability, A.J. might still have been there.
Someone started clapping and then others joined in, their faces filled with wonder. It was difficult not to let her feeling of victory over them appear on her face. For most of her career, her peers had all thought her unworthy of their attention. Now they would pay closer attention.
“Thank you,” Elisabeth said with a little bow of her head. “Please come to my presentation on Fringe Sciences tomorrow and learn about this process. Any questions can be answered then. For tonight, please enjoy the evening.”
When Elisabeth left the stage, A.J. followed her, his steps heavy because she had weighed the suit down to allow for ease of walking. When she sat down, he stood next to her, still waving to the audience. She glanced up at the swirling stardust though the helmet, hoping A.J.’s face would form. It did every once in a while, which always reminded her that he had been a person once and gave her a strange sense of comfort.
“Thank you, Dr. Avery, for that astounding introduction to our convention,” the moderator said. He continued to introduce additional distinguished members, but Elisabeth stopped listening. She glanced up at A.J. again and wondered if her choice to put him on display had been a mistake. He was a sentient being who had accidentally become what he was. Elisabeth was still new to the field of ectoplasm and had primarily focused on building a vessel for him to live in. Yet the laws of their world were specific about what had rights. They did not extend to spirits.
“Elisabeth?” said her protector and friend, Milo, leaning over to touch her arm, “You look troubled. It was an excellent introduction.”
“Thank you, Milo,” Elisabeth said softly with a forced smile. Her conscience was suddenly at war over her hurried decision to show her success with A.J., but the damage had been already done. It was kind of Milo to reassure her, even if he was wrong about what was troubling her.
When the moderator finished, Elisabeth stood, and she and Milo headed for the door with A.J. bringing up the tail. She’d nearly made it when Dr. Nive Harrid and Professor Jacob Greenly cut her off by standing in her path, wearing smug looks. They were older men with outspoken beliefs about anyone who wasn’t like them—which constantly extended to Elisabeth.
